3 Reasons Wizards Fans Can be Optimistic

The Washington Wizards are currently holding a record of 11-48 and in the second year of a big rebuild. It's hard to be excited about anything other than the draft and many fans are wondering, when will it end?

Rebuilds don't have to take forever, and would you believe me if I told you that the Wizards could be a play-in team after the 2026-2027 season? There are three reasons why:

Young core

The Wizards have a good, young core and foundation to build upon. They don't quite have a franchise player, but they will be in a position to draft one in the upcoming draft.

Second-year player Bilal Coulibaly is an elite defender who has shown glimpses of offensive success. Once he changes the spin and trajectory on his shot and becomes more consistent, the sky is the limit. Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George all look like high-level contributors, and let's not forget about 7-foot Center Tristian Vukcevic, who also looks like a solid piece for the future. All of these form a great foundation to build upon, and build they will. The team holds two 1st-round picks in 2025 and 2026.

Veteran leadership and production

To help balance a very young roster, the Wizards acquired veterans who check two boxes: leadership and production. While Marcus Smart and Khris Middleton are older, don't tell them they've lost a step.

Malcolm Brogdon has been productive when healthy, which is not frequently the case, but even when injured he has provided mentorship to guards Jordan Poole and Bub Carrington.

Speaking of Poole, Jordan Poole is having a career season and playing at an All-Star level. He's intriguing because he fits the timeline, but he could also be featured as a trade piece at some point because you have to pay most of the core at some point. He does like DC and has emerged as its locker-room voice.

Saddiq Bey is a wild card, but let's be honest, he can play at a high level. The biggest question is, what kind of player are we getting after tearing his ACL?

Competent front office

Has Will Dawkins made mistakes? A few, but they don't paint the whole picture. Getting little to nothing for Kristaps Porzingis or Tyus Jones was tough but predictable, and while holding on to Kyle Kuzma was a problem, he made it right by acquiring Khris Middleton, a young prospect in AJ Johnson, and a pick swap.

All five draft picks under Will Dawkins are high-impact prospects who will be part of the next great team in Washington. He picked up two prospects in AJ Johnson and Colby Jones, who could be developed to be solid role players in the future, and added draft picks in loaded drafts in 2025 and 2026. The future is bright in DC, and it's about to get brighter on June 25th.

These are all good reasons to be hopeful for the future of the Wizards, but everyone has to do their job. From the owner to the GM, down to the players, everyone has to do their jobs and put in the work. Is success on the horizon in DC? Only time will tell, but it's all good; the Wizards have nothing but time.

Make sure you bookmark Washington Wizards on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!